Dreams of Flight

General Aviation in the United States

By Janet R. Daly Bednarek and Michael H. Bednarek

Publication Year: 2003

General aviation encompasses all the ways aircraft are used beyond commercial and military flying: private flights, barnstormers, cropdusters, and so on. Authors Janet and Michael Bednarek have taken on the formidable task of discussing the hundred-year history of this broad and diverse field by focusing on the most important figures and organizations in general aviation and the major producers of general aviation aircraft and engines. This history examines the many airplanes used in general aviation, from early Wright and Curtiss aircraft to the Piper Cub and the Lear Jet. The authors trace the careers of birdmen, birdwomen, barnstormers, and others who shaped general aviation—from Clyde Cessna and the Stinson family of San Antonio to Olive Ann Beech and Paul Poberezny of Milwaukee. They explain how the development of engines influenced the development of aircraft, from the E-107 that powered the 1929 Aeronca C-2, the first affordable personal aircraft, to the Continental A-40 that powered the Piper Cub, and the Pratt and Whitney PT-6 turboprop used on many aircraft after World War II. In addition, the authors chart the boom and bust cycle of general aviation manufacturers, the rising costs and increased regulations that have accompanied a decline in pilots, the creation of an influential general aviation lobby in Washington, and the growing popularity of “type” clubs, created to maintain aircraft whose average age is twenty-eight years. This book provides readers with a sense of the scope and richness of the history of general aviation in the United States. An epilogue examining the consequences of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, provides a cautionary note.

Published by: Texas A&M University Press

Contents
Search Inside This Book
Book Details

pdf icon Download PDF (28.7 KB)
pp. vii-

Illustrations

pdf icon Download PDF (23.9 KB)
pp. ix-

Preface

pdf icon Download PDF (746.0 KB)
pp. xi-xviii

What is general aviation? This question is perhaps most simply answered by explaining what general aviation is not. General aviation is not the scheduled commercial airlines and it is not military aviation. Pretty much all other aviation activities—including private and sport flying, aerial photography and surveying, crop dusting, business flying, medical evacuation ...

1. From First Seeds to Early Blossoms

pdf icon Download PDF (628.4 KB)
pp. 3-24

... before 1926 witnessed the beginnings of a number of activities that would become part of general aviation. First, pioneer aviators began to explore the limits of the new invention and potential uses for it beyond military and commercial applications. The first of these aviators were the birdmen and bird women of the exhibition era between 1910 and about 1915–16. After World War I, a second group of exhibition pilots emerged: the barnstormers. Second, as ...

2. The“Golden Age”: 1926–39

pdf icon Download PDF (737.7 KB)
pp. 24-64

... between 1926 and 1939 are known as the “golden age” of general aviation. This golden age came about despite the depression and even as federal rules and regulations made the business of flying as well as of manufacturing and selling aircraft more complex. The mid-1920s marked a turning point in the history of aviation in the United States. All forms of aviation—military, commercial, and general— were affected by federal action. Congress promoted the expansion ...

3. For the Duration: 1939–45

pdf icon Download PDF (666.0 KB)
pp. 65-86

... spread through Europe and the Far East in the late 1930s, light aircraft manufacturers—along with most of American industry— anticipated participation in war preparedness and then war production. Although it was not clear as late as 1938, general aviation manufacturers and pilots would play a number of military and civilian roles involving both powered and nonpowered aircraft during World War II, and come out of that conflict with optimistic dreams ...

4. Up from the Ashes1945–80

pdf icon Download PDF (788.9 KB)
pp. 87-120

... hopes many aviation enthusiasts had for a coming air age following World War II were soon dashed. After selling what remains an all-time record number of aircraft right after the war, the general aviation manufacturing industry immediately entered a steep decline from which many companies never recovered. In addition, the postwar period witnessed increased federal regulation. The relationship ...

5. Dreams Once Again DeferredPost-1980

pdf icon Download PDF (770.2 KB)
pp. 121-152

... of the 1980s brought with it a sustained crisis in general aviation. The last two decades of the twentieth century saw a second significant decline in the general aviation manufacturing sector. While the sector began a long-term recovery within five years of the 1946 –47 collapse, the recovery during the second period of decline occurred more slowly and with great uncertainty. In addition, the ...

Notes

pdf icon Download PDF (143.5 KB)
pp. 153-168

Sources for the History of General Aviation

pdf icon Download PDF (103.8 KB)
pp. 169-181

The literature on the history of general aviation is perhaps best described as scattered. There are so-called buff books on just about every type of light aircraft ever built in the United States, and many of the more popular models have inspired several books. Beyond these ready sources on the planes and the people who built them, the story of general aviation is a ...

Index

pdf icon Download PDF (100.6 KB)
pp. 182-191

E-ISBN-13: 9781603446716
E-ISBN-10: 1603446710
Print-ISBN-13: 9781585442577
Print-ISBN-10: 1585442577

Page Count: 208
Illustrations: 6 b&w photos.
Publication Year: 2003

Series Title: Centennial of Flight Series